Black College Football Hall of Fame gets permanent home

After seven years, the Black College Football Hall of Fame has found a lofty home among the big boys.

The location … the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.

The Black College Football Hall of Fame will be moved to Hall of Fame Village in Canton as part of a new $500 million development scheduled to be completed in 2019.

Former NFL and Grambling quarterback James Harris said in a statement: “All of us associated with the Black College Football Hall of Fame look forward to working with the team at the Pro Football Hall of Fame to elevate the story of great African-American players and coaches who persevered and overcame great obstacles to achieve their dreams.”

Twenty-nine of the 266 players enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame played at historically black colleges, including Jerry Rice, Mel Blount, Art Shell, Walter Payton and Willie Lanier.

Check out the pomp and circumstance:

• A game between historically black colleges will be played during the induction festivities at Canton’s Tom Benson Hall of Fame stadium, possibly as soon as next year;
• A traveling exhibit will be displayed at historically black colleges across the nation;
• The two halls also will create a paid postgraduate internship for a student at a historically black college.

The original Black College Football Hall of Fame was co-founded in 2009 by Harris and NFL QB Doug Williams, both of whom starred at Grambling State. Previously, induction dinners and golf tournaments were held in the Atlanta area for the 64 players, coaches and contributors enshrined.